Flashlight oil tester



AU@ 7, 1951 L. G. ALEXANDER ErAl. 2,562,997

FLASHLIGHT OIL TESTER Filed NOV. 5, 1947 Patented Aug. 7, 1951 FLASHLIGHT OIL TESTER Leon G. Alexander, Charlotte, and James W.

Sherrill, Belmont, N. C., mignon to Wiz Accessories Corporation, Gastonia, N. C., a corporation of North Carolina.

Application November 5, 1947, Serial No. 784,212

3 Claims.

'I'he invention relates to a flashlight oil tester for testing and comparing iiuids, such as oil and the like, and provides an illuminated Huid testing means for visually inspecting oil and the like for iluidity and pollution.

An object of the present invention is to provide a simple, practical and comparatively inexpensive unit adapted to be readily applied to a nashlight such as a. regular Boy Scout Army type, without necessitating any change or alteration in the construction of the flashlight and capable of enabling the quick visual checking of the clarity of used crank case oil by service station attendants and others and a simultaneous comparison of a sam-ple of such used oil with clean unused oil while both the sample of used oil and the clean unused oil are simultaneously illuminated by a regular ilashlight battery bulb.

A further object of the invention is to provide for use with an ordinary or standard ashlight a unit which may be easily and quickly applied to the same without necessitating any change or alteration in the construction of the flashlight and which may be equipped with one or more chambers or receptacles for holding a plurality of types of oil or other liquids and which is also equipped with a plain transparent lens or window adapted to serve as a spotlightI for use by an attendant or others at night as well as forming a dish or receptable for holding a sample of dirty or used oil obtained from the crank case of an internal combustion engine oi an automobile or other automotive vehicle by the ordinary- 0R level dip stick with which such internal combustion engines are usually equipped.

It is also an object of the invention to provide a flashlight receiving unit forming a transparent?, translucent or opaque wall in front o! the outer end of the flashlight and adapted! to have advertising matter applied to it by lithog-manine oi: other means for advertising various articles-or commodities.

It is also an object of the invention toprovide a unit having an adapter adapted to fit over the original flashlight' lens or a lens holding cap or the like, without any change or alteration in the construction of the flashlight so that the latin? may be easily serviced by practicality' any servie station in the colmtry for renewal of batteries, bulbs, or even switchy and body.

With the above and other objects in view, tire invention consists in the construction and; novel combination and arrangement oil parts hereinafter fully d illustrated m the accomlil 2 hereto appended, it being understood that various changes in the form, proportions, and minor details of construction, within the scope of the claims, may be resorted to without departing from the spirit or sacriilcing any of the advantages of the invention.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of a flashlight unit constructed in accordance with this invention;

Fig. 2 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view ci the same and a portion of the Boy Scout Anny type flashlight, taken substantially on the line 2 2 o! Fig. l;

Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional view of the nashlight unit taken substantially on the line 3 3 oi" Fig. 1, parts of the flashlight shown in Fig. 2 being omitted for convenience of illustration;

Fig. 4 is a front. elevation of a. flashlight unit illustrating another form oi the invention;

Fig. 5 is a transverse sectional view of the same taken substantially on the line 5 5 of Fie. i:

Fig. 6 is a vertical sectional view taken substantially on the line 6 6 of Fig. 4; and

Fig. 'l is a transverse sectional view taken substantially on the line 1 1 of Fig. 4.

Referring. particularly to Figs. 1 to 3, inclusive, of the accompanying drawings in which is illustrated one form of the invention, I designates an adapter preferably constructed of sheet metal but any other suitable material may, oi' course, be employed in the construction of the adapter. The adapter, which is tapered and ilared outwardly, is provided at its inner end with an annular socket 2 which ts over the plastic lens! oia Boy Scout'army type ashlight l. The lens 3,. which is transparent, may bernmstruacteci ot any slutabie material and when the adapter is made oi sheet metal the inner oi: smaller end of the adapter may be extended and spum over the plastic` flashlight lens 3. The annular socket t may be constructed in any other` and, when permanently attached to the plastic flashlight lens 3, may be removed from the with the ashlight lens. 'Ine socket 2 may' irietionally' engage the plastic flash.- light lens 3 and may be placed on and removed from the flashlight with or without removing thel lens 3. By this construction the oii'r tester unit may be readily applied to an ordi'- nony ashlight without amy change or alteration in the construction thereof and the flashlight may be easily serviced by pnacticaliy any service station in the country for renewal' ot batteries,

panyingdrawingsandpomtedoutmticiaims esmmoeveuswitchand body..

The annular socket 2 is constricted adjacent the inner smaller end of the adapter to provide a shoulder 5 which ts against the outer face of the plastic lens 3 of the flashlight 4 and the edge of the socket 2 may be extended inwardly to provide an annular flange E for engaging the edge of the cylindrical portion 1 of the plastic dashlight lens 3 which is firmly held between the shoulder 5 and the flange 6. By this construction the oil testing unit is rigidly mounted on the flashlight at the front end thereof so that when the circuit of the ilashlight is closed in the usual manner and rays of light from the flashlight bulb are caused to pass through the flashlight lens 3, the oil testing unit will be illuminated.

The flashlight 4 is of the ordinary construc tion and further description thereof is unnecessary.

The adapter I is provided at its outer or larger end with an outwardly extending annular flange 9 which ts within an annular groove I0 in the inner periphery of an elastic retaining ring II of neoprene or other suitable material, which constitutes a rounded rim at the outer end of the adapter. The annular groove I also receives the peripheral edge i2 of a plastic disc I3 which may be transparent, translucent or opaque and which may be constructed of any other suitable material. The plastic disc I3 is provided with three substantially concavo-convex depressions I4, I and IB but the number of depressions may, of course, be varied, as will be readily understood. Annular seats or recesses I1 and IB are provided around the depressions I4 and I5 and fiat transparent plastic discs I9 and 26 are secured in the said seats to form with the depressions I4 and I5 containers or receptacles 2i and 22 for the reception of samples of pure light and heavy oils, and the depression I6 is transparent and is adapted to receive a sample of dirty or used oil obtained from the crank case of an engine of an automobile or other automotive vehicle by oil level dip stick in the usual manner, so that a sample of used oil may be simultaneously compared with a sample of pure unused oil when the circuit of the flashlight is closed and rays of light from the flashlight bulb are caused to pass through the lens 3 of the ilashllght. This will illuminate the oil testing unit and also will render visible advertising matter placed on the disc I3 and surrounding the containers and the depression IB. The depression I6 is adapted to constitute a combined sample holding and spotlight area for enabling a nashlight equipped with anV oil testing unit to be used for purposes other than testing oil. For instance, it will enable the oil level dip stick to be readily located at night without liability of the hand of the operator coming in contact with the hot portion of the motor. When the depression I6 is heldin a horizontal position facing upwardly it Vforms a dish and is adapted to receive and hold a sample of used or crank-case oil and as it is arranged in side by side relation with the containers 2l. and 22. it is adapted to be illuminated simultaneously with said containers by the Abulb of the flashlight so that a comparison of used or crank-case oil may be made with clean oil contained within the containers or receptacles 2i and 22 for determining whether or not a change of oil is necessary.

In Figs. 4 to '1, inclusive. is illustrated another form of the invention in which an adapter 23 is employed for mounting on the plastic lens of a ashlight an oil testing unit having two plates 24 and 25 of metal. plastic. or any other suitable material, provided with three flanged circular openings 26. 21 and 28 and constructed substantially the same as the metal plates of the oil testing unit shown, described and claimed in a copending application led by us on or about August 27. 1947, Serial No. 770.776. The ilanged peripheral portions of the plates 24 and 25 at the openings form grooves 29, 30 and 3I. The grooves 25 and 30 receive the peripheries of transparent containers or receptacles 32 and 33 formed by clear transparent concavo-convex discs 34 and 35 of glass, plastic or other suitable material. The concavo-convex discs which are secured together at their peripheries form the said receptacles 32 and 33 and are adapted to contain samples of pure light and heavy oils or other liquids. The groove 3| at the other opening 28 receives a single inverted concavo-convex lens 36 of glass, plastic or other suitable material presenting a dished exterior face adapted to receive a sample of used oil from a crank case for enabling the same to be compared with the contents of one or the other of the receptacles 32 and 33 which are simultaneously illuminated with the sample of used oil when the circuit of the flashlight is closed.

The adapter 23 is provided at its outer enlarged end with an annular ilange 31 forming a ledge to receive the outer peripheral portions of the plates 24 and 25 which are retained on the ledge by a metal rim 38 approximately L-shaped in cross section and designed to be secured to the adapter by any suitable means.

The annular rim extends over the periphery of the outer plate 24 and securely retains the two plates 24 and 25 on the ledge 31 of the adapter. The inner reduced end of the adapter is constructed the same as the adapter I, heretofore described.

The hollow tubular adapter has opaque walls to prevent rays of light from the flashlight lens from spreading laterally beyond the area of the oil testing unit at the inner face thereof and the adapter may be varied in form, as will be readily understood.

We claim:

l. For use with a flashlight. a liquid tester unit provided with a transparent receptacle for containing clean liquid and having a transparent area which when held in a horizontal position is adapted to receive a. sample of a liquid to be tested. and a tapered outwardly iiared tubular adapter having opaque Walls and provided at its inner end with means for securing it to the exterior of a ashlight at the front end thereof over the flashlight lens, said adapter being provided at its outer end with an annular ledge receiving the liquid tester unit and supporting the same in front of and spaced from the flashlight lens and an elastic rim surrounding the liquid tester and the ledge of the adapter and having an annular groove receiving said ledge and the liquid tester unit for securing the latter to the adapter, whereby the liquid receptacle and the transparent area may be simultaneously illuminated by the ashlight bulb for testing a sample of used or crank-case oil and may be wiped clean to recondition the transparent area for further testing operations.

2. For use with a flashlight, a tubular adapter provided at its inner end with means for mounting it on the exterior of a flashlight at the front end thereof over the lens of the flashlight. and

a liquid tester unit supported by the adapter in iront of and spaced from the lens of the iiashlight and comprising a disc of plastic material provided with approximately circular transparent depressions and a transparent disc secured over one of the depressions and cooperating with the same to form a sealed receptacle for a clean liquid, another of said depressions forming an open exterior receptacle adapted when held in a horizontal position facing upwardly to receive a sample of a liquid to be tested, whereby the liquid to be tested and the clean sample may be simultaneously illuminated by the flashlight and after testing said open exterior receptacle may be wiped clean and reconditioned for further testing operations.

3. For use with a ashlight, a liquid tester unit provided with a transparent receptacle for containing clean liquid and having an exterior transparent area adapted when held in a horizontal position to receive a sample of a liquid to be tested, and a tapered outwardly flared tubular adapter having opaque walls and provided at its inner end with means for securing it to the exterior of a ashlight at the front end thereof adjacent the flashlight lens, said adapter being provided at its outer end with an annular ledge receiving the liquid tester unit, and an elastic rim surrounding the liquid tester unit and the ledge of the adapter and securing the liquid tester unit to the adapter whereby the liquid receptacle and the transparent area may be simultaneously illuminated by the flashlight bulb for testing a sample of used or crank case oil and the transparent area may be wiped clean to recondition the same for a further testing operation.

LEON G. ALEXANDER.

JAMES W. SHERRILL.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 190,587 Heusner May 8, 1877 1,994,102 Holt Mai'. l2, 1935 2,016,819 Meginniss Oct. 8, 1935 2,027,130 Towne Jan. 7, 1936 2,133,544 Kolb Oct. 18, 1938 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 202 Great Britain Jan. l, 1884 219,710 Great Britain June 4, 1925 

